Motte’s role may be diminished
Tyler Motte played so well in his first two games with the Blue Jackets that coach John Tortorella said the forward gave him no choice but to keep him in the lineup.
Unfortunately for Motte, who played Friday night against the Carolina Hurricanes for the sixth consecutive game, Cam Atkinson’s return from injury and lack of stability at center on the fourth line might limit his role moving forward.
In Atkinson’s first game back Tuesday, Motte received just 5:16 of ice time against the Predators, nearly 13 minutes fewer than the previous night against the Rangers. Tortorella said that wasn’t a reflection of Motte’s performance.
“His game is chasing down pucks, making things happen that way,” Tortorella said. “I played him in different situations. I didn’t have him on a top-six line. That certainly changed the landscape for him. I’m happy with his game.”
On Friday, for the third time in six games, Tortorella used seven defensemen and just 11 forwards. Wing Sonny Milano was a healthy scratch for the second time. Zac Dalpe, recovering from an upper-body injury, also didn’t play. That left fourth-line wings Motte and Markus Hannikainen without a center and regular shifts.
“It’s a little different being a little less involved in the game. You feel like you have a little less impact maybe,” said Motte, who played 33 games with the Blackhawks last season before coming to the Blue Jackets in the Artemi Panarin trade. “But ice time is not something I can control. No matter the situation I’m put in, I’m just going to compete to the best of my ability and try to get results.”
Motte, who scored a goal in each of his first two games with the Panthers, said he wants to return to “having that same step and same speed” as he did Oct. 30 against the Bruins and Nov. 2 at the Panthers, and “continue to play with it.”
Slap shots
Backup goalie Joonas Korpisalo is 1-3 with a 3.28 goals-against average and .896 save percentage, but has played well and wasn’t at fault for either of the two goals the Predators scored on him. “Whenever you put your second goalie in and you have an opportunity to get points like we did, and we didn’t, that’s frustrating to me,” Tortorella said. "But Korpi certainly gave us a chance.” … Expect Atkinson to continue to be used extensively on penalty kills and power plays. “Since I’ve been here, he’s probably the guy I look to most for every opportunity to get him on the ice,” Tortorella said. “And he deserves it.”